Free Web NovelChapter 71: Chapter 71: Rewarding Merits
Su Mu paused for a moment, then it dawned on him and he couldn’t help but chuckle.
He picked up the Constable Uniform he’d just tossed on the ground and put it back on.
’Good thing I took these clothes off. Otherwise, if I didn’t want to run around naked, my only option would have been to strip a corpse.’
"There."
Once he’d put the Constable Uniform back on, Su Mu spoke up. "Sorry for the spectacle, Miss Luo."
Luo Anning turned, walked slowly over to Su Mu, and suddenly reached out to poke his arm.
By the time Su Mu thought to dodge, Luo Anning’s slender finger had already touched his forearm. She poked him lightly, then drew her hand back.
"Extreme Skin Tempering Realm?"
A look of surprise appeared on her face. "No wonder someone as weak as you could become one of the Taiping Bureau White Clothes. So that’s why."
Su Mu was speechless.
’Is she complimenting me or insulting me?’
"How old are you?"
she asked suddenly.
"Seventeen, almost eighteen,"
Su Mu replied casually.
"I’m twenty-five."
A sullen voice came from the side.
Wei Yongfu walked up to Su Mu, his face a mask of regret.
He’d just watched several hundred taels of silver fly away; of course he wasn’t happy.
"Sorry, I wasn’t asking you,"
Luo Anning said politely to Wei Yongfu, then turned to look at Su Mu. "I’m nineteen. Major Completion in Bone Tempering."
’I didn’t ask you, either.’
’Are you trying to show off to me?’
"You’re incredible, Miss Luo. I’m humbled by comparison,"
Su Mu replied, his tone somewhat perfunctory.
"When I was your age, I had already reached Tendon Tempering Perfection,"
Luo Anning said earnestly.
Wei Yongfu started tracing circles on the ground more frantically.
Su Mu was at a loss for words. ’Okay, you’re amazing, but do you have to rub it in? Haven’t you ever heard that fortunes can change?’
"You may have been exceptionally recruited by the Taiping Bureau as one of the White Clothes, but reaching the Fourth Stage of Body Tempering in two years is incredibly difficult.
It took me a full thirteen months to go from Tendon Tempering Perfection to Major Completion in Bone Tempering, a speed that ranks in the top three in the history of Wuling City."
A hint of smug pride touched Luo Anning’s delicate face.
Su Mu began to understand what Luo Anning was getting at. It seemed she wasn’t just showing off her talent for the sake of it.
"The fact that you reached the Extreme Skin Tempering Realm is proof enough of your talent. But even so, if you can’t reach Bone Tempering Perfection before you turn twenty, you’ll be stripped of your status as one of the Taiping Bureau White Clothes.
And once you’re past twenty, the chances of successfully undergoing Blood Exchange will drop drastically."
Luo Anning continued, "You need help."
"You can help me?"
Su Mu asked.
The process of Body Tempering was, in reality, a process of burning through silver. By spending thousands of taels, even someone with mediocre talent could achieve success in Body Tempering.
It’s just that most minor families couldn’t afford such an expense.
Someone like Wei Yongfu, who spent all his time scrambling to cover the costs of Body Tempering, actually ended up slowing his cultivation speed significantly.
For a Martial Artist to increase their speed in Body Tempering, substantial financial support was essential.
This was clearly what Luo Anning was referring to.
’Su Mu’s heart skipped a beat. Her surname was Luo. The Luo Family was one of the four great families of the Inner City, and the Wuling City Lord’s surname was also Luo.’
"I can."
Luo Anning nodded with certainty.
Su Mu hesitated. Windfalls might happen, but he was sure one would never land on him.
’Why would someone with a great family background, incredible talent, and a stunning figure suddenly offer to help me? Could it really be just because she caught a glimpse of my... assets a moment ago?’
"I can give you a Body Tempering Technique and the resources you need for it,"
Luo Anning said. "Do you understand what I’m offering?"
Wei Yongfu, still squatting and tracing circles in the corner, looked up, his eyes wide as saucers.
’How come nothing this good ever happens to me?’
’A Cultivation Technique *and* money?’
’Does being handsome really let you do whatever you want?’
’That brat Su is just a bit younger than me, a bit more talented, a bit more handsome... what else has he got?’
Wei Yongfu grumbled to himself.
"I understand."
Su Mu nodded. The Cultivation Technique and silver wouldn’t be free. If he accepted her offer, it would be the same as choosing a side.
The four great families of Wuling City were not a monolith; they fought openly and schemed secretly amongst themselves.
Siding with the Luo Family naturally meant standing against the other three families.
"If you can become a Taiping Captain, then naturally, there’s nothing more to say. The Taiping Bureau does not interfere in local affairs,"
Luo Anning said. "If, and I’m saying if, you don’t pass the Taiping Bureau’s selection and fail to become a Taiping Captain, then you can come to the Luo Family. You could be a Tributor, or a Sima, either is fine."
The deal was actually very simple.
The Luo Family would support Su Mu’s cultivation. If Su Mu managed to become a Taiping Captain, he would be beyond their control, but they would have at least fostered goodwill with him.
If Su Mu failed to become a Taiping Captain, he would have to leave the Taiping Bureau. An expert at the Fourth Stage of Body Tempering would be very important to the Luo Family.
Luo Anning’s offer was worlds better than Hu Yuxing’s.
At the very least, her attitude was one of fairness. She wasn’t treating him like a dog to be summoned and dismissed at her whim.
Su Mu wasn’t actually opposed to picking a side. If he had met Luo Anning before meeting Lin Qi Huan, he would have agreed without hesitation.
But now, Su Mu was already one of the Taiping Bureau White Clothes. All he had to do was follow the established path upward.
His cultivation was different from others; he didn’t need that much silver.
"With support, you wouldn’t need to waste time being a constable just for silver. If you used that time for cultivation..."
Luo Anning said.
"My apologies, but I believe what I earn with my own two hands feels more real."
Su Mu had been hesitant, but upon hearing Luo Anning’s words, his tone became firm and decisive.
’Unacceptable! She wants to take away my position as Chief? How could I tolerate that?’
’Do I look like I care about the silver? It’s the position I value!’
"Alright then."
Luo Anning hadn’t expected Su Mu to refuse. She was stunned for a long moment before she said, "You can think it over. If you change your mind, you can come find me anytime.
Consider these a gift from me, as a show of my sincerity."
She casually pointed at the corpses on the ground.
"This demon is more than you can handle. I’ll have someone help you take it back to the Taiping Bureau for processing."
Then she pointed at the demon. "The credit will go to you as well."
...
The difference between people really was immense.
Luo Anning had done most of the hard work, yet she didn’t take a shred of the credit.
Hu Yuxing had sat safely in the South City Bureau’s Government Office without taking a single risk, yet he’d brazenly walked away with more than half the credit.
Su Mu suspected that if Hu Yuxing hadn’t been wary of his status as one of the Taiping Bureau White Clothes, he would have greedily claimed all the credit for himself.
After wrapping things up at the South City Bureau, Su Mu headed straight home.
"Constable Xiao Su, the items have all been moved to the backyard. I guarantee no one else saw them."
Zheng Wang was already waiting for him at the door. He said this mysteriously, then left with a satisfied smile.
When Su Mu reached the backyard and saw the seven or eight large chests piled there, a smile spread across his face as well.
Of the spoils confiscated from the No-Heaven Sect, he had kept half. Of the remaining half, he gave half to his fellow constables. What Hu Yuxing saw was merely a quarter of the total.
...
